The present disclosure relates generally to wellbore operations. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to techniques for heating a subterranean formation surrounding a wellbore during various wellbore operations, such as drilling, casing and/or completing the wellbore.
Wellbores are drilled into the earth to locate and gather valuable hydrocarbons. Drilling tools with a bit at an end thereof may be advanced into the earth to form a wellbore. Drilling mud may be pumped from a surface pit, through the drilling tool and out the drill bit to flush the cuttings and cool the drilling tool during drilling. Upon exiting the drill bit, the drilling mud passes up the wellbore between the downhole tool and the wellbore, and returns back to the surface pit. The mud may be used to line the wellbore to prevent fluids from passing from the formation and into the wellbore, for example, in a blowout.
Testing tools, such as wireline, logging while drilling, measurement while drilling, or other downhole tools, may be deployed into the wellbore to measure various downhole parameters, such as temperature, pressure, etc. The downhole parameters may be used to analyze downhole conditions and/or to make decisions concerning wellsite operations.
In some cases, the wellbore may be provided with casing (or liner) deployed into the wellbore and cemented into place to line a portion of the wellbore. Cement may be pumped into the wellbore to secure the casing in place. The addition of casing and cement may be used to increase wellbore integrity about a portion of the wellbore.
Once cased, production tools may be deployed into the wellbore to draw production fluids through the wellbore and to the surface during a production operation. Various techniques have been developed to facilitate production. For example, simulation tools, such as injection tools, may be deployed into the wellbore to fracture the wellbore. Fluids, such as steam or other conduction fluids, may be injected into the formation with the injection tools. In some cases, heat may be applied to the wellbore during various operations and using various techniques, such as downhole heaters. Examples of heating at the wellsite are provided in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,103,909, 6,973,977, 8,162,059, and 7,860,377. Temperature changes in the wellbore may affect various downhole conditions and/or operations.